Happy new home for fire victims

The team behind the Plett Fire Fund has been very busy over the past year, and handed over their sixth home to June 2017 fire victims last week.

The latest beneficiary is Presta Arendse from the Kranshoek area in Plettenberg Bay. She lost her home when the fires swept through the town last year.

The fund was born after a group of residents involved in relief efforts were so touched by the difficulties which the residents of Kranshoek – a very poor community on the outskirts of Plett – had to endure during this time that they felt the need to intervene.

Most of the residents in the area affected by the fires lost everything they owned in the blaze and were forced to seek shelter with friends or family. Some even had to live in the backyards of acquaintances as they did not have the financial means to rebuild their homes.

Among the residents who felt compelled to help the community were Marius Venter, Sally Turner and Neville Peterson who, soon after the fires, started the Plett Fire Fund.

Since then they have managed to, through the NPO, raise about R800 000. The biggest portion, about R500 000, came from the Lubner Fund and about R300 000 from the mayoral disaster fund.

So far they have built two brick homes and four log homes for fire victims not only in Kranshoek, but also Airport Road and Harkerville.

“We have in total managed to help 39 fire victims with other needs too. This includes anything from fixing roofs to helping install gas,” Venter said, who added that they are in the process of building a seventh home.